Security cameras have been installed on street lights along Tokyo’s high-end shopping boulevard, Omotesando-dori, situated in Shibuya Ward, due to an increase in pick-pocketing and camera voyeurism.

Ten surveillance cameras were installed this week along the boulevard lined with brand retailers, boutiques, and restaurants following persistent requests by an association of Omotesando retailers, Fuji TV reported.

The Tokyo equivalent of Paris’ Champs-Élysée, Omotesando is constantly bustling with Japanese youth, brand-name shoppers and foreign tourists.

However, an increase in crimes from pick-pocketing to voyeuristic photos and videos spurred the association to urge the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department to equip the chic shopping district with security cameras.

In addition, on Jan 1 this year, the nearby Harajuku fashion district was the site of a crime scene when a 21-year-old man plowed his minivan into a crowd along Takeshita Street. Eight people were injured in the attack.

The government will no longer use the term "lifelong singles" as a label for people who have not married by age 50, deeming the term inaccurate as Japanese are increasingly tying the knot later in life, officials said Thursday. (Japan Today)

Japan's new supercomputer Fugaku is set to begin operations around 2021 with the country aiming to regain the title of building the world's fastest computer, replacing its current supercomputer K, government-backed research institute Riken said Thursday. (Japan Times)

Kyoto Prefectural Police have arrested a 23-year-old male Australian national who is suspected of scrawling graffiti in dozens of locations in Kyoto City, reports Fuji News Network (May 22). (tokyoreporter.com)

The International Olympic Committee says boxing is set to maintain its place in the 2020 Tokyo Games, but that the sport's international association should be excluded from organizing the events due to a number of problems.
(NHK)